Hearing continued for Whitpain man accused of screwdriver stabbing

LANSDALE — A 19-year-old Whitpain man accused of stabbing a girl in the head with a screwdriver during an assault in Lansdale in December had his preliminary hearing continued on April 25 due to scheduling confusion, according to court personnel.

Defendant Ryan Craven, of the 700 block of Boehms Church Road, was in District Judge Harold Borek’s Lansdale court on Friday — as were prosecutors, Lansdale detectives, the alleged victim and witnesses to the reported assault — but Craven’s Philadelphia-based attorney was not present. Court clerks explained that the lawyer said he did not receive paperwork indicating the hearing was scheduled for that day.

Borek set May 29 as the new date for Craven’s hearing.

Craven, who was taken into custody on an arrest warrant at a 7-Eleven on Swede Road on the afternoon of April 12 after a police officer recognized him, is facing one count each of felony aggravated assault, misdemeanor simple assault, misdemeanor recklessly endangering another person and misdemeanor possession of an instrument of crime with intent in connection with the alleged Dec. 5 incident.

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Lansdale detectives said that on that date, police responded to Abington Health Lansdale Hospital for a report of a stabbing victim and met with a woman and her juvenile daughter — the latter being the injured party.

The girl told police that she had been having an “ongoing problem” with Craven threatening her, stemming from an unspecified incident that allegedly occurred at the Montgomery Mall approximately four days earlier, and just before 6 p.m. on Dec. 5, she was hanging out with a group of friends, including Craven, outside the Wissahickon Park Apartments on the 700 block of East Main Street when she and Craven began to fight, detectives said.

According to police, the girl said she was able to fend off Craven, but he became “enraged,” pulled a screwdriver out of his pocket and stabbed her in the forehead just above the right eye — a wound that required stitches to close.

Detectives said they spoke with two witnesses to the incident who said they saw Craven stab the girl in the head with an object that appeared to be a screwdriver.

On the night of the alleged incident, police said, they spoke with Craven, who claimed that he was the victim of an assault. However, according to detectives, Craven has since refused to speak with officers about the alleged assault despite repeated requests from the Lansdale Police Department, prompting police to obtain an arrest warrant earlier in April.

At Craven’s arraignment on April 12, Borek set bail at $10,000 cash, and Craven was committed to Montgomery County Correctional Facility, where he remained behind bars until posting bond two days later.